Moment
by snickerdoodle12
Summary: Maiko, oneshot, songfic, AU. It's New Years' Eve and Mai is out getting the booze. She's taking forever to get back, so Zuko goes to look for her. No real plot, just Maiko fluff.


_A/N – Listening to the song "Moment" by Aiden gave me this idea. The lyrics are so sweet and I can totally see Maiko in it. :D Yes, they are in boarding school and they are seventeen and they are drinking. Please, like anyone listens to that law. ;D This is very short, I know. But is the quality good enough for it to reach you guys' standards? I hope so. Enjoy._

_By the way, the lyrics tell the story._

_Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender._

* * *

_I will wait_

_For this moment_

_When our lips collide,_

_And almost stop the Earth_

_You're in my arms tonight_

Where is she?

Zuko paced restlessly around the yard, which was quite difficult to do considering all the people around him. Almost everyone from their school's dorm rooms had gathered outside. It was freezing; he could see all the couples cuddling together. He wrinkled his nose in what seemed to be disgust, but was really sheer jealousy and anxiousness.

That's how it should be with him.

_So, I've come_

_To complicate the dead_

_Are you with me?_

_I've written out all my vows again_

Mai checked her cell phone, watching it change from 11:57 to 11:58. She had two minutes to get back to the yard. Sighing, she tensed her shoulders so her coat covered more of her face. It was so dark she could barely see in front of her, and almost dropped the bag she was carrying.

Why did _I_ have to get the beer?

_We're almost home to see the silence break_

_On New Years' Eve_

After the signal came that only two minutes were left, Zuko decided to go look for her. Not that it was a far walk; the liquor store was just down the street. But it was cold and dark and it was no doubt she bought more booze than she could carry…

…and she shouldn't have to be alone tonight.

_We're only seventeen_

Ugh. She hated cold weather. Not that heat was her favorite, but it was better than this. Especially that toasty fireplace feeling, when everything is content and you just sit and enjoy it. She'd never admit it, but Zuko gave her that feeling. Just thinking about it warmed her insides a bit.

Wait. I'm supposed to be mad at that idiot.

_So if love exists…_

"Mai?!"

_I will fall…_

"Zuko!"

_I will wait_

_For this moment_

_When our lips collide,_

_And almost stop the Earth_

_You're in my arms tonight_

After hearing her answer, the boy looked ahead. He caught faint sight of her lithe figure and sprang forward.

_Just one more kiss_

_To soothe the pain exists_

_In a world of lies_

_Misery, take my shame alive_

"You alright?" he asked, taking the bag in one arm and wrapping the other around her waist. Mai couldn't help but smile as they began walking rapidly back to the school.

"I'm fine," she answered, placing her hand on the one that rested on her waist.

"But you were taking forever."

"Think about it, Zuko. It's New Years' Eve. Everybody wants drinks."

_When everything fails a violent death_

_The smile you gave_

_Visit me in hell tonight, and say_

"I guess," he sighed. "I should've gone."

"You were busy with that project. I'm fine," Mai repeated. Zuko didn't answer, just quickened their pace. The girl checked her phone again. It was already 11:59. She showed it to Zuko and he sighed.

"We're not gonna make it."

Mai didn't want to admit that she had already guessed they wouldn't. And frankly, she was glad. Back at the school, she'd be with all those other imbeciles. Here, they were alone. But they could still hear the countdown…

_If love exists_

Five, four, three, two, one.

_I will fall_

Fireworks.

_I will wait_

_For this moment_

_When our lips collide,_

_And almost stop the Earth_

_You're in my arms tonight_

Zuko grinned at her. Now, he wasn't the type to get all overdramatic over things like this. And he definitely wasn't prince charming, but the smile he gave her made her feel like a princess. She laughed a little, then smirked, closing in on him. He dropped the bag, glass and beer and paper-thin cardboard flying everywhere. But it didn't matter.

_I will wait_

_For this moment_

_When our lips collide,_

_And almost stop the Earth_

_You're in my arms tonight_

He got a little nervous when she started moving closer. It was like a dream, some sexy vision of a girl coming toward him. And through the old worn coat, frizzy hair, and beer-soaked shoes, he thought she never looked more beautiful.

_So I'm alive, in love_

_So I'm alive, in love_

_So I'm alive, in love_

_So I'm alive, in love_

Mai saw him exhale sharply, a seductive puff of steam escaping his lips.

_I feel so alive_

He's been craving this.

_I feel so alive, tonight_

She wants it.

_I feel so alive_

_I feel so alive_

_You can't stop this feeling_

_So alive_

_I feel so alive_

_I feel so alive, tonight_

_I feel so alive_

_I feel so alive_

_I feel so alive_

_You can't stop this feeling_

Mai wasn't cold anymore. Zuko wasn't lonely. Their wildly beating hearts almost ached from the speed, and their once so-cold-I'm-numb fingertips were nestled in each others' hair or gripping the other's jacket. Once their tongues made contact, the noisy fireworks, the cold, the smelly glass at their feet all vanished. In this moment, it was simply them.

_I will wait_

_For this moment_

_When our lips collide,_

_And almost stop the Earth_

_You're in my arms tonight_


End file.
